Chapter 23 two prominent figures in early cinema

In the early days of silent films and sound films, Wang Xianzhai, who specialized in acting as villains and made movie fans hate and love him, now audiences over 50 years old may still have some impressions of his sinister and cunning face with a sly smile !Wang Xianzhai has the spirit of perseverance in the study of art, and he is so humble and responsible in his dealings with others. Whenever someone asks him for advice, he will search for details and tell them to the best of his knowledge.So he's a big bad guy on screen and a good guy in private. He was originally from Shandong, and he went to Harbin with his father to do business since he was a child, so he can speak Russian fluently with Big Nose.Later, he moved to Shanghai with his mother to settle down, and we sometimes went to the restaurant opened by Joffre Road Bairus, and it was always cheap and delicious to go with him.The articles he wrote are very literary and artistic, but who knows that he is still a bachelor of medicine at Hujiang University!

As soon as he graduated, he worked as an optometrist for Moudley Optical Co., Ltd., and his salary was barely enough.At this time, Zheng Zhengqiu and Zhang Shichuan had just established a star film company, and were preparing to shoot the first feature film "The Orphan Saving the Ancestor", looking for suitable actors everywhere.It happened that Zhang Shichuan went to Moudeli to get glasses. People in the film industry at that time were the most envied profession in Shili Yangchang, and Zhang Shichuan was a tycoon in the film industry. The determination to eat.It was a rare opportunity, and by giving Zhang Shichuan an optometry opportunity, he expressed his own feelings.Mrs. Zhang is looking for actors in "Orphan Saving Ancestors". Wang Xianzhai is handsome and well-spoken. actor (supposedly he was the only actor under contract at the time).

When he first appeared on the screen, he originally played the role of a righteous and awe-inspiring niche in "The Orphan Saves His Ancestor". Let it go freely, both Zheng and Zhang are promising talents. Halfway through the filming of the play, Zhang Rong, the male protagonist who played the role of murdering an orphan with a benevolent face and evil intentions, suddenly picked up Qiao.Zheng and Zhang asked people around, and found out that Du Zi was a distant relative of him, so they asked Dan to smooth things over for him, and paid him all his salary in advance.Unexpectedly, this dear man knows the taste by eating the marrow. In a few days, he will go fishing for three days, posting on the net for two days, and become a fool. Invalid, start a new stove, and reopen the mirror.The role of Zhang Rong was replaced by Wang Xianzhai, which established Wang Xianzhai's role as a villain since then.

Zhang Danfu gave him the nickname "a symbol of human evil" in "Jing Bao", and then Sun Yusheng, Xu Zhenya, Lu Dankan and other Shanghai literary and art circles gave him nicknames, such as "insidious politician" and "two-faced man". , "rogue", "rogue specimen", anyway, any vitriolic words, all the crimes are rolled into one, and his role as a villain has been established in more than ten years of film and drama career. Later, he participated in "Laughing Marriage" performed by Hu Die, playing the role of Shen Fengxi's luthier Shen Sanxian.The team went to Beiping for location shooting. Although his ancestral home was in Shandong and he had stayed in Harbin for a long time, he spoke Wu Nong's soft language very idiomatically. On the contrary, the mandarin he spoke had a strong southern accent, which was not up to standard.When the location team arrived in Beiping, he dealt with rickshaw pullers and snack sellers at temple fairs all day long. The purpose was to slowly correct his pronunciation and pronunciation. It was the place where he drank tea, so he played Shen Sanxian's insidious and mean behavior in courting customers to the fullest, and even the little movements of playing the strings were done vividly.Later, various film companies successively filmed "The Destiny of Laughing and Laughing". Although the male and female protagonists who continued to play Shen Fengxi and Fan Jiashu had different acting skills, when it came to playing Shen Sanxian, everyone would think of Wang Xianzhai unexpectedly. Not as good as before.

He had heard rumors that Shen Fengxi's experience alluded to a love history of the young boss who was jealous of Dagu Wang Peichen.He got to know Lu Chengke, who played the strings for Wang Peichen. He spent a lot of money, and only had a meal with Wang Peichen at Xieying Western Restaurant, but he didn't talk about it. It's a pity that the original author Zhang Henshui was not in Beiping at the time, otherwise Don't talk to Henshui face to face, all the doubts will be solved easily. Life in the film industry is upside down, diet and daily life are not normal, he is aggressive in his work, so he contracted lung disease.He was afraid of Western medicine injections, so he switched to traditional Chinese medicine.At that time, both Wang Yuanlong and Yan Yuexian smoked opium, and he followed them on the smoking kang when he was fine.Some people said that smoking opium can prevent the deterioration of lung disease, so he gradually fell into the black.When the Shanghai War broke out, the film and theater colleagues organized the Shanghai Film and Television Troupe to go up the river and perform in Sichuan.Because he was weak and sick, he had this habit again, and his mobility was limited, so he returned to Shanghai first, but unfortunately contracted dysentery again. The most feared dysentery when he smoked opium, he finally died and died in Shanghai Baolong Hospital.Now some old friends still miss Wang Xianzhai very much when they mention Wang Xianzhai!

When Tang Jielai is mentioned in Taiwan, no one may know about it.But when it comes to "Mr. Wang", movie fans who are around 50 years old probably still have a little impression.In the early days of the Anti-Japanese War and just entering the era of sound films, Tang Jie starred in films such as "Mr. The role of encouraging vulgarity. Tang Jie was originally from Yuanling, Hunan. His grandfather had served as a general in Liangjiang Governor's Yamen, and later settled down in Nanjing.It is said that when his family bought a property in Bafutang, they found a large number of "Fa Bandits" hidden in the foundation where they built the house. Therefore, the local people named the house "Tang Wanwan" with cornices, heavy columns, and bright courtyards.When it comes to Bafutang Tangjia, everyone knows it, and everyone knows it.Tang Jie grew up with rich clothes and fine food, he spent his whole day with hawks and dogs, raised fish and crickets, and lived the life of a playboy.One day he had a sudden whim, and saw that his elementary school classmates Gong Jianong and others were doing brilliantly in the film industry, and he also wanted to go out with them.At that time, star companies were in great need of talents, so he easily stepped into the film industry.Although Tang Jie usually has no boldness and masculinity, who knows that he can be dedicated and meticulous when making movies.In Mr. Wang's episodes, for the sake of styling, he pulled out all the upper and lower teeth near the front teeth. Look at the current film and television industry, if you want to play monks or costume dramas, some people refuse to shave their long hair. Its name is the Hair Care Movement, which is far from Tang Jie's professionalism.

Tang Jie played Mr. Wang in one episode after another, and it became a stereotype. Some fans met him and called him Mr. Wang, and he never doubted it.People from Hunan always have a bit of a hot temper. The studio is the most realistic, and there are a lot of things that bully the weak and fear the strong. If such things happen to him, he will definitely analyze the situation and settle the matter.If you manage too many things, it is inevitable that you will offend others.After the victory of the Anti-Japanese War, he served as the captain of the military band of the Kuomintang. After 1949, he was sent to the Qilian Mountains to dig traditional Chinese medicine. He returned to Shanghai in the winter of 1953 and died that year.

In the half century since our country started making films, I have seen at least two Chinese films, from silent films to sound films, from black and white to color, and I have seen countless actors and actresses.However, the looks of Wang Xianzhai and Tang Jie still linger in my mind from time to time, which proves that good acting skills will never be erased.